6. Genesis of the ironstones
The patterns of element abundances preserved in ancient sediments can be used to constrain the influence of terrestrial, hydrothermal, biogenic and detrital sources on the sediment composition (Wonder et al., 1988; Derry and Jacobsen, 1990; Lottermoser and Ashley, 2000). Distinction between these sources is based on differences in the mineralogical and chemical composition.